THE RECIPE for the Poor Man's Friend, the Bridport cure-all ointment invented by Dr Giles Roberts, has been bought by the town's museum.

It was one of numerous lots that was snapped up by the museum at an auction at Duke's salerooms, Dorchester.

The recipe, in Dr Roberts' handwriting and sealed for his successors Beach and Barnicott, was part of a lot that fetched £483. Other key pieces of Dr Roberts paraphernalia purchased by the museum included the dispensing cabinet (£2,185) that used to be in the East Street shop, his medical diploma and gas lights, which in 1832 had been the first in Bridport.

Buyers crammed into the salerooms where many bids, including some from France and Australia, were taken over a bank of mobile telephones.

Notable bids included £575 for a collection of Poor Man's Friend ointment jars and £345 for the doctorate from Aberdeen University.

The collection realised just over £10,000, well in excess of the auctioneers' expectations.

You could feel the tension in the air as lot after lot came under auctioneer Matthew Denney's hammer. There were a number of local buyers in the crowd, many of whom vowed not to bid against Bridport Museum, which was looking to add to its Dr Roberts collection.

The items were being sold on behalf of actor John Blakey, whose late parents, Frank and Joan, used to run the chemists in East Street, which is now the cancer research charity shop.

Museum curator Sophie Hunt said: "We are delighted to have been able to secure these important pieces of Bridport's history for the town. We would also like to thank everyone for their support in helping us to buy them."

She revealed that a number of people offered donations to help the museum purchase the items for the town.

The artefacts will be on display in the museum from Saturday August 30 until the following Saturday as they are. They will be incorporated in the permanent display ready for next year, which marks the 170th anniversary of Dr Roberts' death.

Auctioneer Mr Denney said: "It was lovely to see so many new faces in the sale room, particularly the number of people from Bridport who had come to bid on items from the collection.

"We are delighted with the prices that we were able to achieve for our client, it is always a great pleasure to work on a unique collection of this type.

"The success of the sale demonstrates that when properly marketed and promoted there is a real strength in the market for the best and most unusual items, especially when they are of a unique nature and unlikely to be seen on the market again.

"Special collections of this type come to the market very rarely and Duke's are pleased to have been able to offer this collection for sale."